Editing Białystok (section)

===Urban layout===
[[File:20200508 090415 Rynek Kościuszki in Białystok May 2020.jpg|thumb|[[Kościuszko Market Square|Kościuszko Square]] in 2020]]
Białystok is roughly circular, centered around the [[Kościuszko Market Square|Central market square]] and [[Branicki Palace, Białystok|Branicki Palace]]. The decisive influence on the development of the city was exerted by natural and human factors - the course of roads, the [[Biała (Supraśl)|Biała]] and its tributaries and the layout of railway lines. The choice of land for the construction of the factory was also determined by the price of the plot. The layout of the city, in accordance with the 18th century palace and park layout, emphasizing the magnificence of the residence, hindered the development of the city in width. Two railway lines: Białystok-Suwałki and Białystok-Słonim, separated its northern and eastern parts from the rest of the city: Dziesięciny, Wygoda, Zacisze, Pieczurki. Originally, the city's territory was about 50 hectares. In its early days Białystok was located at the intersection of two local roads and had two most important monuments: a church (with the current brick church from 1626) with an [[Kościuszko Market Square|accompanying market square]] and a Gothic castle owned by the noble Wiesiołowski family, the former owners of the town. The project which was aimed at rebuilding the layout of the city was initiated by Stefan Mikołaj Branicki at the end of the 17th and early 18th centuries. He established a new market ({{langx|pl|Nowy Rynek}}) (part of the western side of [[Kościuszko Square, Białystok|Kosciuszki Square]] with the town hall, located on the western side of [[Sienkiewicza Street, Białystok|Sienkiewicza Street]]). The route leading towards [[Suraż]] was moved to a new location (today's Suraska Street) forming straight road section ending in the southern corner of the market square and creating a new viewing corridor. This design decision made it possible to erect new buildings so that the old part of the settlement and the [[History of the Jews in Białystok|Jewish quarter]] were no longer visible. The second viewing corridor was created by shifting the [[Lipowa Street, Białystok|existing route leading towards Choroszcz]] to the northern corner of the market square.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://zabytek.pl/en/obiekty/bialystok-uklad-urbanistyczny|title=Part of the urban area|author=Grażyna Rogala|accessdate=2023-09-07|date=2014-12-23|publisher=Regional Branch of the National Heritage Board of Poland in Białystok}}</ref>

[[File:20191110 153631 Sienkiewicza 77 Bialystok November 2019.jpg|thumb|right|An example of Białystok's urban contrast, with a mix of heritage and contemporary architecture]]

The communication system serving the entire city was made of streets radiating out from the [[Kościuszko Square in Białystok|central market square]]. An inventory plan made by Becker in 1799 was needed by the Prussian authorities in connection with the negotiations on the acquisition of Białystok for a royal residence. The plan is of fundamental importance as it shows the development of the city in the first period of its creation. The area of the city did not exceed 1.5 km2, and the population was approx. 3.5 thousand. The entire urban area was closed with 6 loose-fitting gates and buildings situated on regular plots. Compact buildings were found only in the market square, the frontages of which were 1- 2-storey buildings with brick front elevations. [[Lipowa Street, Białystok|Choroska]] and Zamkowa Streets were built up with only brick houses. The city was dominated by the palace complex, which, together with the park, covered a substantial area. The residence palace was designed on a European scale and created new development opportunities for Białystok.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Z badań nad zmianami struktury przestrzennej miasta Białegostoku|journal=Rocznik Białostocki|issue=18|year=1993|pages=432–435}}</ref> Following the handover of the city from the Prussian Kingdom to the [[Russian Empire]] in the early 19th century, the city began growing in a very fast pace as a result of intensive industrialization, losing its original Baroque composition.<ref>{{cite book|title=Białystok w dwudziestoleciu międzywojennym|language=pl|pages=234–235|last1=Samsel|first1=Agata}}</ref>

After the [[First World War]], the first attempts were made to organize the city, which had so far developed without plans - between the palace grounds and arable land. At the request of the Association of Polish Cities, in the years 1938-1939 a general urban concept of the city was created by Ignacy Tłoczek. The plan called for the creation of new communication routes, relieve the center, demolish the Chanajki district, create a housing estate and connect with it the unique green areas around the city with new tree plantings. The Second World War prevented the comprehensive implementation of this plan. In addition, in 1919 the city's territory was significantly expanded, incorporating the surrounding villages with plans of expanding the city.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://plus.poranny.pl/jak-powstal-wielki-bialystok-w-1919-roku-do-miasta-przylaczono-kilkanascie-wsi/ar/c1-14163461|title=Jak powstał Wielki Białystok? W 1919 roku do miasta przyłączono kilkanaście wsi|language=pl|date=2019-05-28|accessdate=2024-08-18|last1=Januszkiewicz|first1=Julita}}</ref>

[[File:Saint Roch church in Białystok 2.jpg|thumb|right|[[St. Roch's Church, Białystok|St. Roch's Church]], 1920s and 1930s [[Modernist architecture]]]]

The average height of buildings in the city is not high. The center is dominated by buildings not exceeding 25 meters in height, and the outskirts of the city are mainly occupied by low-rise single-family houses. Taller buildings dominate in some residential districts such as the districts of Piasta [[Osiedle Piasta I, Białystok|I]] and [[Osiedle Piasta II, Białystok|II]] (located to the south of the city center), Dziesięciny [[Osiedle Dziesięciny I, Białystok|I]] and [[Osiedle Dziesięciny II, Białystok|II]] estates (located to the northwest of the city center) as well as [[Osiedle Wysoki Stoczek, Białystok|Wysoki Stoczek]] and [[Osiedle Słoneczny Stok, Białystok|Słoneczny Stok]]. Dominants in Białystok are located mainly in the center and they are also there located two most important city icons: the [[St. Roch's Church, Białystok|St. Roch's Church]] and the [[Białystok Cathedral]], which are on one axis. Each of the districts also has its dominant, which is usually a church or an Orthodox church. The most important space in the city is [[Kościuszko Square in Białystok|Kościuszko Square]] - the main square in the shape of a triangle. The space is delimited by two axes, one is part of the axis connecting the two largest churches, and the other runs towards the west of the Center district along Suraska Street and ends at Młynowa Street. An important spatial arrangement in Białystok is the Branicki Palace complex. The Baroque layout of the palace complex is symmetrically shaped according to one compositional axis with a coherent garden layout.<ref>[rewitalizacja ulicy Młynowej w Białymstoku]</ref>

Throughout the years it expanded to include nearby villages: In the mid-eighteenth century [[Osiedle Bojary, Białystok|Bojary]] which was located on the right bank of the Biala River was incorporated to it. On 10 May 1919, in accordance with the decision of the Sejm, [[Białostoczek (Białystok)|Bialostoczek]], [[Horodniany]], Zwierzyniec-Letnisko, [[Osiedle Starosielce, Białystok|Starosielce]], [[Słoboda, Podlaskie Voivodeship|Słoboda]] (which was founded at the end of the 17th century, between the current Pogodna and Świerkowa Streets), Ogrodniki, Pieczurki, [[Osiedle Wysoki Stoczek, Białystok|Wysoki Stoczek]] were incorporated also, as well as two mill villages Marczuk and [[Osiedle Antoniuk, Białystok|Antoniuk]]. By the onset of [[World War II]] the city's territory amounted to {{convert|40|km2|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://poranny.pl/sloboda-byla-wsia-mieszkancy-mieli-tu-gospodarstwa/ar/4933253|title=Słoboda była wsią. Mieszkańcy mieli tu gospodarstwa|publisher=Kurier Poranny|date=7 April 2014|access-date=29 August 2019|archive-date=29 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190829205515/https://poranny.pl/sloboda-byla-wsia-mieszkancy-mieli-tu-gospodarstwa/ar/4933253|url-status=live}}</ref> The reconstruction of the city following the end of [[World War II]] and establishment of the [[People's Republic of Poland]] saw further expansion: the villages [[Osiedle Bacieczki, Białystok|Bacieczki]], Bacieczki Kolonia, [[Korycin]] and part of the village [[Klepacze, Białystok County|Klepacze]], [[Krupniki]], [[Fasty]], [[Zaścianki (Kurowszczyzna)|Zaścianki]] and Zawady were incorporated into the city. The 70s saw another wave of expansion with the villages of [[Osiedle Bagnówka, Białystok|Bagnówka]], area of Zakłady Silikatowe, areas of state forests, [[Dojlidy Ponds]] and the orthodox cemetery at Dojlidy. At the onset of the millennium, in 2002, the village [[Osiedle Zawady, Białystok|Zawady]] was included in the city's limits and at the last enlargement, in 2006, the villages [[Osiedle Dojlidy Górne, Białystok|Dojlidy Górne]], Zagórki and Kolonia Halickie were incorporated and the city reached its current territory of {{convert|102|km2|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Tokajuk|first1=Jerzy|title=Konflikty przestrzenne na styku istniejacej zabudowy zagrodowej i planowanej zabudowy mieszkaniowej na terenach wsi strefy podmiejskiej wlaczonych do obszaru miasta Bialoegostoku|pages=312–313}}</ref>